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Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

I've just read Swarm Traps and Bait Hives and relied on it to give a talk at our beekeepers meeting last month. It's very good and you can get it online for much less than the book itself. It's only 50 pages...a very quick read. Youtube is also a great place, for sure! Learn quick and get your traps up already...Swarm Season is already here in some places (not mine...two more weeks :0(

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

Here, I will tell you all you need to know for free:

Use your standard deep brood chambers for traps, don't make a special box.
If you use medium depth brood chambers use two together for the trap.
Place inside as many old black brood combs as you can spare.
Drip a few drops of lemongrass oil into the entrance, don't waste time and money on baggies, q-tips and all that junk. It soaks into the wood and lasts for years.
Don't use a screened open bottom.
Place the trap anywhere. High up is good, but don't break your neck getting it high up in a tree. I use woodpiles, tops of walls, 2nd story decks are good, top of old cars, benches or use a 15g. plastic nursery can for a stand.
Morning sun and afternoon shade works sell, but I get them in full sun also.
I face them south, north, east and west, but avoid into the wind.
I make them easy to pick up at night with no bee suit by adding an entrance disk or 1/8" mesh screen over a hole for quick closure.
Where I want a new hive right on one of my stands I just set up an empty brood chamber with a top and bottom.
Follow my advice and like me, you will become a Master Swarm Baiter.

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

> should i use that if i dont have lemon grass

Note that "lemon grass" is not the same product as "lemongrass oil". Lemon grass is sold in the produce section of Asian food markets. Lemongrass oil is a fluid often found in "health food" stores, but it is most commonly used in aromatherapy, not as a food.

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

Originally Posted by Rader Sidetrack

> should i use that if i dont have lemon grass

Note that "lemon grass" is not the same product as "lemongrass oil". Lemon grass is sold in the produce section of Asian food markets. Lemongrass oil is a fluid often found in "health food" stores, but it is most commonly used in aromatherapy, not as a food.

True, but I think it was Tomas that mentioned he made a tea from Lemon Grass and used it as it grew wild were he lived. Or someone else...

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

For the price of one swarm lure you can purchase years worth of Lemongrass oil. I think I paid $7 for something like a 4 once bottle. I don't know how many drops you can can get from 4 oz, but it is a lot! I don't think the lure will work that much better than LGO.

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

I just did a search for LemonGrass oil on ebay and got lots of hits. The stuff I got was supposedly food grade. Someone said that is what you want. I don't know if the bees could smell the difference. It isn't like they are eating the stuff.

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

Originally Posted by shannonswyatt

I just did a search for LemonGrass oil on ebay and got lots of hits. The stuff I got was supposedly food grade. Someone said that is what you want. I don't know if the bees could smell the difference. It isn't like they are eating the stuff.

just bought some pure lemongrass oil on ebay. food grade as well. now...excuse the dumber question. would u recommend using both the lure oil and lemongrass oil ? or would tah be overkill ?

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

That is up to you. I have heard some say they use both. But the LGO would probably mask the QMP, and the lures cost more. You could always make a bunch of traps and try it out for yourself to see the results. If I were sure I would get a swarm for a $10 lure I would definitely go that route, but there is no guarantee you will get any with any combo. It probably has more to do with the kind of year for swarms and location of the hive. The LGO or QMP is going to get the bees that are in the area to find your hive a check it out. If there is no swarm then you will get no bees. If there are swarms you just want to ensure they know about your box.

Re: which swarm trapping book should i buy ?

++++ Cudos to the McCartney Taylor book!! I built my first trap using his book. I didn't listen and hung it on a tree in the middle of the yard in full sun, no action at all. Then I moved the swarm trap into the shade in some bushes, and the next day I had a swarm. I used lgo a few drops sprinkled here and there plus a very small piece of old comb. I just started beekeeping in January so I'm just posting my experience so far.